Witness says he escaped death in Kosovar village attacked by Serb

<br>THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) _ Fehim Elshani, a Kosovar Albanian farmer testifying against Slobodan Milosevic, told war crimes judges Thursday how he survived a Serb onslaught on his village that left

Thursday, February 21st 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) _ Fehim Elshani, a Kosovar Albanian farmer testifying against Slobodan Milosevic, told war crimes judges Thursday how he survived a Serb onslaught on his village that left a pile of maimed bodies in his front yard.

Elshani, testifying in the trial of the former Yugoslav president, said Serb soldiers shelled, then stormed the 100-house town of Nogavac, ``herding up large numbers of people.'' Several were killed, and thousands were forced to leave.

``They wanted to commit genocide,'' he told the U.N. court. ``They came to exterminate them.''

He was the second material witness to describe alleged war crimes against ethnic Albanians in Kosovo in the spring of 1999, brought to an end by the 78-day NATO bombing of Yugoslavia.

The witness sat uneasily just a few feet from the once-powerful leader, charged in the murder of thousands and the expulsion of 800,000 people from the Serbian province.

In total, Milosevic faces 66 counts of war crimes for three wars in the Balkans, including genocide for mass killings in Bosnia.

Elshani, 67, said he was asleep with his wife when explosions caused by Serb troops shook his two-story farmhouse ``breaking all the glass in the house.''

``There were seven dead people beside the craters,'' he said.

The couple hid in the basement to escape the attackers, but a Serb policeman came into the house to find them.

'``Now I will cut your throat like a sheep,''' Elshani quoted the soldier as having said. ``He took his knife and tried to massacre me.''

They were saved when two Serb policemen who knew him entered the house calling: '``Uncle Fahim, do you know me?'''

Despite Milosevic's refusal to recognize the legitimacy of the U.N. tribunal, the defendant has played an active role in his case since the start of his trial on Feb. 12.

He grilled Elshani with questions intending to show that the Serbs had not attacked civilians but were defending themselves from rebel forces of the KLA. Milosevic suggested the Serbs had been trying to help the local population to safety.

The witness was unwavering in his position that the Serbs were there to rid the area of the non-Serb population

``If that is what you call help, what would the other be?'' he asked. ``You burned three old women. It is unimaginable the things that you have done.''

In a surprise to his critics, Milosevic's first cross-examination of an Albanian politician highlighted inconsistencies in testimony and showed how seriously he is taking his defense.

Another survivor of Serb attacks on a village just a few miles away testified a day earlier that troops under Milosevic's command ransacked his village and murdered 16 of his family members.

Agim Zeqiri, 49, suffered severe injuries to his kidneys when he was beaten by Serb troops in the town of Celina. He felt too ill to finish his testimony Thursday and was excused by the judges before the former president was able to complete his cross-examination.

Milosevic was clearly irritated by the early dismissal, lifting his hand in a gesture of frustration as the witness left the courtroom.

But presiding judge Richard May said it was ``pointless'' to question someone feeling unwell and that the circumstances of the testimony would be taken into consideration in the judgment.

May had asked Zeqiri if he was well enough to continue for 10 minutes.

``No, I'm not well at all,'' he said, his back turned to Milosevic. ``I have my own problems, my own worries to deal with.''

On Wednesday, Milosevic had cross-examined Zeqiri, the first eyewitness of Kosovo crimes to come to the tribunal, for about 30 minutes.

Zeqiri told the court Wednesday that he had hidden in a ditch while police squads destroyed his village.

The former president has not appointed a lawyer and refuses to recognize the tribunal, established in 1993 to try those responsible for violent crimes during the decade-long breakup of Yugoslavia.

War crimes in Kosovo comprise the first of three indictments Milosevic faces, and he is the only suspect brought to trial for crimes in that province. He also is accused of crimes against humanity in Croatia and genocide in Bosnia. He could be sentenced to life if found guilty on any one of 66 counts.